What's up...

It is awesome being a mommy to my sweet little boy.  I honestly am so grateful for the family that God has blessed me with.  My cup surely does overflow!  I am not just saying that because it sounds good either.  My husband is amazing.  He is so smart and driven such a hard worker and succeeds at all he sets his mind on doing.  My kids each have their own personalities that absolutely captivate me.  We've been battling sickness in this house for the past few days.  Carson started it Sunday night when she struck a fever it only lasted about 24 hours and she was better.  Darby woke up this morning with it.  They get such high fevers it's crazy at one point with both they had a 103. something fever on the medicine and I was not due to give them any for a while!

So better late than never is was they always say, and I sure hope they are right.  Rowen is now only 9 days away from being 4 months yet I still have not documented his 2 month appointment!  So what did I learn at his visit?  Well, he had dropped from 95th percentile in weight to 25th so I had to start supplementing with formula.  Which is okay bc I want him to be well fed and I think being the third baby in the house I had so much going on and my milk just couldn't keep up.  That, and it never came in to the full amount that it did with the girls.  So then, just about a week ago I switched to bottles only because he just seemed hungry and it was so much to try and figure out what/if he was getting in breast milk.  He was at that appointment measuring in at 25th for weight, 60th for head circumference and 75th for height.  He is a very smiley, very happy baby!  I am sooo sad to see him getting bigger and bigger!  

Here is a picture of him taken right at 3 months by some photographer friends of ours.

What's on my mind?

If I could bottle up the sweetness of my baby boy there wouldn't be enough containers in the world!  I'd say this about all three of my sweet kids!  I am so blessed beyond my own comprehension!  So thankful for HIS sweet grace and tender mercies!

So that was my facebook status tonight.  I literally have tears as I consider this.  I can't even believe my boy will be 2 months tomorrow.  I'm not usually this sentimental/emotional about things but maybe it's the fact that this is my last child (unless we adopt, more on that later) or maybe it bc I feel like God's grace has given me a deeper appreciation for my young children as I see how rapidly they grow.  I don't know but I can say that life this side of heaven (wink wink) is full of busyness, obstacles, pain, sorrow and what have you and I tend to be one to experience those things more than the sweet things, the loving, joyful things that God also gives us in His great kindness and favor and love toward us.  So I am especially thankful for the state of my heart right now.  Praise Jesus, and I am thankful for facebook asking me what was on my mind tonight so I could take some time and enjoy Him!

I'm baaaaack (again)

So much has happened since I last blogged!  I mean heck, it's been since December!  My goodness, how irresponsible slack of me!  Honestly, it's a time issue.  I'm not very technological and so it takes time and effort for me to grace this blog with pictures of what I write about.  I have to (assuming they are loaded on the computer already) save them as smaller files to upload, edit them, watermark them, and make sure they are "cool" enough to fit in in blog land.  At least that's the pressure I put on myself.  On top of that I have to be creative to have something to write about and keep folks entertained, psssh that's not happening.  Especially now that times 3 now my brain has shrunk with the pregnancy of a child.  So yeah Rowen's here now (there goes more time).  But, (did I just enlarge the fact that I started a sentence with a but?) now more than ever I NEED to blog!  My children are growing up right before my eyes!   Baby boy, Rowen, Bubby (all names we like to call him), will be 2 months in 3 short days!  I don't do a good job at recording their milestones or experiences or the cute things that come out of their mouths so I must blog them.  So this is for my sweet sweet Darby (4), Carson (2), and Rowen (as we previously established almost 2 months orrr zero as Darby likes to refer to him).  They may not be the most graceful writings you've ever laid eyes on, or the coolest ideas, or have the best pictures ever (shoot, it may not have pictures at all), but I'll be glad to have a record for my babes.  I hope that pictures will frequent this blog but you can consider the ideas or recipes a bonus when I have time for such!  No pictures for today BUT I will leave you with probably the sweetest video of a baby ever in history (of course I am biased tho).

Make sure you turn the volume up and for some reason it automatically starts instead of you pressing play so you can stop it and restart it....no time to figure it out and as I said...not too technological here.

Christmas Gifts and Ideas/Recipes

So yesterday was Darby's last day of preschool and now we have a break for the holiday.  I put together some things to give her teachers and I am also sharing some with my neighbors.

For your taste buds:

White Chocolate Peppermint Popcorn!  Click here for recipe.   There is another version at Our Best Bites but I did the white chocolate kind.

To kill germs: (not caused by the popcorn)

Last year I made these.  This year I made them simular but went with the monogram version here instead.  Love them. 

Pray for Ansley

How sad.  This family just recently found out that their 4 year old daughter has cancer.  Here is a link to the blog they have started.  Please join with me in praying for God to heal this child.

http://prayingforansley.blogspot.com/

She's a funny one...

At least that is what the doctor said at her 18 month check up. 

My sweet Carson is 25th percentile for head circumference, 50-75th for weight and 25th again for height.

She actually on the scale isn't too chubby but bc of her height she is my little butterball.

I love her, she is super duper sweet all the time.  It's been a while since I updated my blog on the kiddos so I need to more often for my records and such ; ).

She is running and walking rather well, her hair, bless her, is still slowly but surely growing in.  She is very quiet.  She talks but not much and not often.  She does repeat things you say when you ask....if she is in the mood.  Some times she spouts off in what we call her own language... She is generally just a heavy thinker and serious and quiet.  I love her little personality.  Her favorite jam is the ABC's.  She LOVES her big sister.  Really she loves all of us, the dog, dad and mom.  She is quite attached to her family and is so lovey.  I love watching Carson and Darby interact.  They play so great.  Yesterday when I picked Darby up from her little preschool Darby came and grabbed her hand and walked her over to her friends on the rug and asked, "Do you like my baby?". 

A week or so ago Carson went in to the bathroom and grabbed the step stool and brought it into Chad's office, first she tried to climb into his lap, then she was "helping" him work by bringing him CD's one at a time and getting him to stack them on his desk...then she just stood by watching and waiting to see if he needed help ; ).  It was so stinking cute.  I snapped a picture on my phone.  I think it is the cutest.

Some thoughts on Christmas

I think I have said before but Christmas is my FAVORITE holiday.  I love the colors, smells, decorations, shopping, family, food and etc...

Christmas with children is fun...and challenging.  Trying to capture the true meaning of Christmas is a hard thing in all of our hearts but especially in a child who LOVES the presents, the lights and the junk food and etc.  All of those things are fine and dandy but if they replace the true excitement over a Savior being born then they really are all meaningless little idols in our hearts.

What's annoying as a parent.  Christmas programs.  As Darby and I were watching one the other day I was just so disappointed, but not surprised. 

So here we go, seemingly against the grain to teach her:

the point of Christmas: Jesus' birth

the miracle of Christmas: God in the flesh (born of a virgin)!  come on ppl that is a big deal!

the "magic" of Christmas:  personally I don't care for the word but I would just refer to last statement

what to believe in: why Jesus is the son of God of course sent to save

I'm so confused...this program had not a single mention of Jesus but they taught that when something is wrong all you have to do is believe in the magic and miracles of Christmas.  It's so shallow and fluffy really.  I'd like to ask people who live this way,  what do they do when something goes wrong in January?

Another one we watched recently made it seem like the only way Christmas is "magical" is if you believe in Santa... oh me oh my

So now I feel like singing/praying some of the words to "Onward Christian Solider".

Just continuing in the faith and praying for God's mercy on me and my children and for the people around me.

And thankfully and joyfully with Jesus' cross before me.

"See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of the world rather than on Christ."  Colossians 2:8